Happy Friday. Here’s what we’ve got today…

• A look at Carlyle’s deal for Worldpac

• Plus, sponsor interest heating up for Evolent Health

Worldpac carved-out:

Carlyle has agreed to acquire automotive parts wholesaler Worldpac from Advance Auto Parts for $1.5 billion in cash.

The deal was announced this week as part of the company's quarterly update, which also disclosed a revision to full-year guidance that sent shares down more than 17 percent. Now valued at less than a quarter of its 2021 peak, Advance Auto has struggled with softness in same-store sales on top of the typical post-pandemic labor inflation and supply chain issues.

The company has also been managing activist pressure from Saddle Point Management and Daniel Loeb's Third Point, and reached an agreement earlier this year to hand Third Point three seats on the board.

The Worldpac sale, however, was part of an earlier strategic review launched in 2023, the result of which was a decision to exit the company’s wholesale business in favor of a singular focus on the chain’s blended box retail model. The deal's proceeds ($1.2 billion after taxes and advisory fees) have been earmarked for debt paydown and new store openings.

Advance Auto also previously considered the sale of its Carquest division and had planned to launch a second process immediately after Worldpac, but has now backtracked and says the strategic review is complete and it will hold on to the unit. Continued poor performance at the parent or renewed Third Point pressure could mean Carquest will be back in play at some point in the future (and Advance Auto may be more than receptive to inbound interest).

With Worldpac, Carlyle is picking up a business that generated around $2.1 billion in last-twelve-months revenue across a footprint of more than 300 locations. The deal's headline EBITDA is around $100 million, though management noted that this figure excludes some amount of corporate overhead held at the parent — this may mean standalone EBITDA comes in marginally lighter when fully-burdened (and that the deal’s true multiple is slightly richer). Advance Auto said it plans to slim down the RemainCo cost base as it right-sizes for a "post-Worldpac operating structure."

As part of the separation, the two sides also negotiated a go-forward distribution agreement covering certain Worldpac European OEM offerings, which allows Advance Auto to continue sourcing products through Worldpac on a white-label basis. The scope was characterized as “not a huge piece of the business” for Advance Auto but could be more meaningful for Worldpac.

Wes Bieligk, a partner on Carlyle's Global Industrials team, called out Worldpac's focus on the professional repair shop market: "The trend longer term is for that market to grow, and the economic resiliency makes it an attractive part of the industry."

The deal is Carlyle's first major North American industrials investment since 2020 and follows a series of positive outcomes from previous corporate carve-outs in the vertical, including Axalta (DuPont) and Allison Transmission (General Motors). Current hold Nouryon, a salt producer purchased in partnership with GIC from Dutch conglomerate Akzo Nobel, is in the process of advisor selection ahead of a possible 2025 exit.

• DSV and a consortium led by CVC Capital Partners have separately submitted bids of up to €16 billion to acquire DB Schenker, Deutsche Bahn's logistics unit, per Bloomberg.

• CME Group and S&P Global are considering a sale of joint venture OSTTRA, a post-trade services business which could be worth between $2 -$4 billion, per Bloomberg.

• Healthcare software company Evolent Health, trading at a market value above $3.8 billion, is in discussions with private equity suitors on a potential sale after receiving inbound interest, per Reuters.

• The Riverside Company invested in GFOS, an Essen, Germany-based provider of workforce management and manufacturing execution systems software.

• Inspired Pet Nutrition, backed by CapVest Partners, acquired Butcher's Pet Care, a UK-based manufacturer of wet pet food.

• CR Fuels acquired Portabull Fuel Services, a Mississippi-based provider of fuel management solutions and equipment rentals, from Jones Capital.

• THL Partners acquired a majority stake in YA Group, a forensic consulting firm providing risk mitigation services to claims companies.

• Arsenal Capital Partners agreed to acquire Knowtion Health, a provider of AI-enabled claims resolution services for health systems, from Sunstone Partners.

• Terramont Infrastructure Partners invested in Long Island Waste Services, a New York-based solid waste management provider.

• PrecisionX Group, a portfolio company of CORE Industrial Partners, acquired Ditron, a provider of micro precision stamping solutions.

• QualiTech, a portfolio company of MidOcean Partners, acquired Ellison Bakery, a manufacturer of cookies, snack bars, and inclusion ingredients, from Tilia Holdings.

• VION Biosciences, backed by Iron Path Capital, acquired Echelon Biosciences, a Salt Lake City-based supplier of lipid-based excipients and materials for mRNA therapies.

• SPATCO Energy Solutions, backed by Kian Capital, acquired Blue1 Energy Equipment, a manufacturer of DEF storage solutions.

• Goldman Sachs Infrastructure, Wren House Infrastructure, and Igneo Infrastructure Partners are among the final bidders for Nabiax, a Spanish data center operator owned by Asterion Industrial Partners and Telefonica, which could be valued at around €1 billion.

• Oaktree is in exclusive talks to acquire a majority stake in B. Riley Financial's (Nasdaq: RILY) appraisal and valuation services arm and its retail, wholesale and industrial solutions unit, at a valuation of around $380 million, per Bloomberg.

• Nippon Steel and JFE Steel acquired a 30 percent stake in the Blackwater coal mine, an Australian open-cut operation producing metallurgical coal, for $1.08 billion from Whitehaven Coal.

• Brighton Park Capital and Symphony Ventures acquired a $250 million stake in GreyLion-backed TickPick, a ticketing marketplace that competes with StubHub and SeatGeek.

• Chanel acquired a 25 percent stake in MB&F, a Swiss independent watchmaker.

• Dropbox acquired Reclaim.ai, an AI-powered scheduling tool.

• Zomato acquired Paytm's movie and events ticketing business, including the TicketNew and Insider platforms, from One97 Communications for around $244 million.

Tech, Vertical SaaS, & Misc. Enterprise

• Grafana Labs, an observability platform, raised $270 million in Series E funding led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, with participation from GIC, Sequoia Capital, Coatue, Lead Edge Capital, J.P. Morgan, K5 Global, and CapitalG.

• Opkey, a continuous test automation platform, raised $47 million in Series B funding led by PeakSpan Capital, with participation from UST Global, Verica, Vertical, and YouNest.

• Grid Status, a data and analytics platform for the electric grid, raised $8 million in seed funding led by Energize Capital, with participation from NFDG Ventures, Rayburn Electric Cooperative, and Evergreen Climate Innovations.

• Workpay, a Kenyan cloud-based HR, payroll, and benefits platform, raised $5 million in Series A funding led by Norrsken22, with participation from Visa, Y Combinator, Saviu Ventures, Axian, Plug n Play, Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures, and Acadian Ventures.

• FLOWIT, a Swiss AI-based digital coaching platform, raised €4.2 million in seed funding co-led by Vi Partners and Alstin Capital.

• Depot, a Portland-based build acceleration platform, raised $4.1 million in Seed funding led by Felicis, with participation from Y Combinator, Aviso Ventures, and Tokyo Black.

Fintech

• Siepe, a provider of software and technology-enabled services for private credit and CLO managers, raised $30 million in Series B funding led by WestCap.

• Lettuce Financial, an automated accounting and tax provider for solopreneurs, raised $15 million in Series A funding led by Zeev Ventures.

• Resal, a Saudi Arabian e-gifting platform, raised $9 million in Series A funding led by Derayah Ventures Fund, with participation from Al-Wafrah AlThanya Investment Company, Venture Souq FinTech Fund, ADDiriyah Asset Management, Nomad Holdings, and Bugshan Investment Group.

• Sorella Labs, a crypto startup developing Ethereum Maximum Extractable Value tools, raised $7.5 million in seed funding led by Paradigm, with participation from Nascent, Uniswap Ventures, Robot Ventures, and Bankless Ventures.

• BSX Exchange, a DeFi derivatives protocol, raised $6.2 million in pre-seed and seed funding led by Blockchain Capital, with participation from Bankless Ventures, No Limit Holdings, Cadenza Ventures, Breed VC, and Maelstrom.

Consumer & Media

• Home Run Dugout, a baseball-focused eatertainment concept, raised $22.5 million in Series A funding led by Lagniappe Capital Partners, with participation from BCS Capital.

• Tilt, a real-time shopping platform focused on live fashion sales, raised $18 million in Series A funding led by Balderton Capital, with participation from TQ Ventures, Earlybird, and Seedcamp.

Healthcare

• XII Medical, a clinical-stage developer of neuromodulation therapies for obstructive sleep apnea, raised $45 million in Series B funding led by Omega Funds, with participation from Intuitive Ventures, Cleveland Clinic, Ajax Health, Longview Ventures, and Aperture Venture Partners.

• Vandria SA, a Swiss biotech developing mitophagy-inducing small molecules for age-related and chronic diseases, raised $30.7 million in Series A funding from Hevolution Foundation, Dolby Family Ventures, and ND Capital.

• Slingshot AI, a startup developing large-language models for behavioral health, raised $30 million in seed funding led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from Menlo Ventures.

• Solace, a digital health platform connecting patients with healthcare advocates, raised $14 million in Series A funding led by Inspired Capital, with participation from Craft Ventures, Torch Capital, RiverPark Ventures, and Coalition Operators.

Industrials, Greentech, & Other

• LIS Technologies, a developer of laser technology for uranium enrichment, raised $11.88 million in seed funding from 28 Ventures Fund.

• Enteligent, a developer of solar-powered DC-to-DC electric vehicle chargers, raised $6 million in new funding led by Taronga Ventures.

• Deep Fission, a Berkeley-based nuclear energy startup developing underground reactors, raised $4 million in pre-seed funding led by 8VC.

• AQR Capital Management raised $350 million for a new long/short ESG fund.

• Illumina Ventures is targeting a $300 million raise for its third life sciences fund.

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